This invention relates to a self-closing breakaway valve assembly including improved valve mounting with rotation limiting stop.
Self-closing breakaway valve assemblies are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 3,921,656. Very generally, a self-closing breakaway valve assembly is comprised of two frangibly connected valve housings each having a valve member rotatably mounted therein. The valve members and the valve housings each have a bore formed therethrough, and when the rotatable valve members are in their open positions, the bores of the valve members and valve housings are aligned to provide a passage through the self-closing breakaway valve assembly. The valve members are each spring biased to a closed position, i.e. a spring rotates the valve member to misalign the bore of the valve member with the bore of the valve housing in which it is mounted to block the passage therethrough. The valve housings are connected by frangible means and the rotatable valve members are held open by interposed trigger means. The trigger means releases upon separation of the valve housings to permit the rotatable valve members to close.
Each rotatable valve member is mounted on aligned pivot axis shafts, one end of each shaft being secured in the rotatable valve member and the other end of the shaft being rotatably received in an opening in the valve housing. The spring bias is provided by a spring coiled about the shaft and having one end thereof secured to the valve housing and the other end thereof bearing on a pin also mounted to the rotatable valve member at a point spaced apart from the pivot axis shaft. When the rotatable valve member is released to close, the spring acts on the ball through the pin to rotate it to its closed position, and the pin grounds against a shoulder of the housing to limit rotation of the valve member and hold it in its closed position.
With reference to my copending application, Ser. No. 900,329, filed Apr. 25, 1978, there is disclosed a frangible connector for the two valve housings of a self-closing breakaway valve assembly, wherein the load at which the valve housings separate may be selected independently in the tension and bending modes.
In both U.S. Pat. No. 3,921,656 and copending application Ser. No. 900,329, it is pointed out that a self-closing breakaway valve may comprise a single valve housing having a valve member rotatably mounted therein wherein the single valve housing is frangibly connected to an additional housing member which does not contain a rotatable valve member. This alternative is useful where it is only required to seal on one side of the two housing members upon separation thereof.